


Thanix Cannon

by commandershakarian



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Non-Commander Shepard, Normandy SR-2 - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-08
Updated: 2016-06-08
Packaged: 2018-07-13 00:50:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 709
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7131422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/commandershakarian/pseuds/commandershakarian
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Amber Shepard gets caught by Garrus Vakarian red-handed messing with the Thanix Cannon's calibrations.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Thanix Cannon

With her tongue sticking out of the corner of her mouth, Amber Shepard twisted a few wires before removing her hand from the console. It’d been too long since she had worked with tech and even though she probably shouldn’t have been messing with the Normandy’s systems, she was bored. Her dyed auburn hair was piled atop of her head, pieces falling down her neck, tickling her skin. Wiping the sweat from her brow, Amber squinted her hazel-green eyes, the lack of light making it difficult for her to see what she was doing.

A cough broke her concentration. Her finger brushed an exposed wire and she yelped as it shocked her. Grumbling, her gaze found the intruder. “What do you want, Vakarian?”

Garrus Vakarian was leaning against the opposite wall, his eyes watching her with amusement. “Did the Commander ask you to come down here and mess with my calibrations?”

She ignored his question. If Charley knew she was down in the Main Battery, she’d lose her mind. “I have no idea what I’m doing at the moment, but I know I’m doing it wrong.”

Garrus chuckled, leaving his perch against the wall to join her on the floor. He had difficulty folding his long legs enough to sit and it brought a smirk to Amber’s lips. He was the biggest dork she’d ever met. “Let’s see what you’ve broken now.”

Pursing her lips, Amber tried to stop from mouthing off, but she never did have self-control. “I don’t _always_ break everything I touch.”

Garrus’ mandibles twitched when he laughed again, his concentration mostly on the wires she’d ruined. “It’s all about the context, Shepard.”

Her eyes slanted at him, angry over his casual use of her last name. She hated it. _Shepard_ was her sister. _Shepard_ was her Aunt Hannah. It wasn’t _her_. Not anymore. Brushing her hand across her nose, she tried to ignore the biotics that were flaring up beneath her skin. Whenever she was agitated, upset, or angry, her biotic abilities would manifest in unpredictable ways. The last thing either of them needed was for her to lose control in the Main Battery of the ship.

Garrus, sensing the sudden charge in the air around them, turned to glance at her. Amber was used to people using her and leaving, but there was something different about the turian. Trust had taken some time to build between them, but now, as they sat together messing with the console, she couldn’t imagine not knowing him. For all the shit Cerberus had done, her decision to join them had lead her back to her sister. It had lead her to Garrus.

The turian’s hand pulled hers away from her face. Her eyes flashed up to his, seeing the tenderness he always held when looking at her. “I know you don’t like being reminded of what happened.” His voice was quiet, but the only other sound in the room was the humming of the guns. “I’m sorry.”

Amber calmed at his words, the threat of an uncontrollable biotic charge disappeared. “It’s my problem, Garrus. Don’t worry about me.”

He squeezed her hand lightly. “I’ll never stop worrying. It’s what I do.”

Amber smiled, grateful for his presence. Her mood swings were unstable on the best of days and impossible on the worst, but Garrus always had a way to ground her. Without him, she didn’t know what she’d do. She leaned forward and gave him a small kiss on the side of his face. He laughed at the gesture.

“Glad I still got it.” He stood and pulled her up with him.

“You always did, Vakarian.” She assured him, standing on her toes to kiss him again. When she met his gaze, her expression was pleading. “Could we not… mention this to Charley?”

“You mean the destruction of the Thanix Cannon?”

Amber nodded, biting her lip sheepishly. Charley would be furious.

“She’ll never even realize.” He promised, draping an arm across her shoulders and kissing her temple. “What do you say we get out of here before you break anything else?”

Amber rolled her eyes, but a smile was permanently affixed to her face. Garrus had that effect on people and by _peopl_ e, she really meant herself.


End file.
